With a Democrat in the White House, the Iowa Democratic caucuses weren't likely to break turnout records. However, this year is even more different, as the party has lost its first-in-the-nation status in the presidential nominating process.
Instead of arguing over candidates in person, starting today, Iowa Democrats will start getting presidential nominating cards by mail. And those results will not be announced until Super Tuesday, on March 5.
But the caucuses must go on. This year, instead of the presidential campaign building interest in the caucus, Iowa Democrats will be driving the bus all on their own. For some, that's an exciting future.
“To make Iowa purple again, we have to make Johnson County as blue as it’s ever been," said Dan Feltes, the vice chair of the county's Democratic Party.
In a state that has grown redder, Johnson County has remained a stronghold for Democratic votes. Feltes says his eyes will be on those who do show up to caucus. People motivated to caucus are potential party volunteers.
That focus on party building — not the White House — is something Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart says is an asset moving forward.
“A lot of people come simply to have the ability to express their preference for president but are really not interested in the party-building," she said.
While some Democrats focus on party building, others are looking beyond the caucuses to make a political impact.
Adam Peters has been involved in the caucuses since seeing then-Senator Barack Obama speak during his freshman year at Decorah’s Luther College in 2007. That year he became a precinct captain. He would go on to staff the Pete Buttigieg campaign in 2020. But things are different this year.
“I just didn’t see a united effort," he said. "And I also wasn’t exactly seeing enthusiasm."
He says he sees the party working to build itself up, but it is not happening fast enough. And in his resident Scott County — historically another Democratic stronghold — Republicans are winning seats.
While he is glad the new presidential preference by-mail is more accessible, he says the party is not making a coherent case for participating in its caucus or its structure.
Rather than the caucus or the state party, he says he's shifted his focus to his work at Clock Inc., an LGBTQ+ Community Center in Rock Island. There, he says he can feel his work having a more tangible impact than in political campaigns.
“I need to be doing something that makes actual change," he said. "I need to be building an actual community that not only outlasts a political movement or political campaign, but improves the people’s lives now, today.”
Alejandro Comellas is not just looking outside the Democratic caucus but has changed his registration altogether. While he tends to vote Democratic, this year he is joining Republicans, saying it will have a bigger impact on the election.
“How can I strategically put a vote that will actually be important for the primary?" Comellas said.
His goal is for the highest quality candidates to face one another in the general election. For Comellas, that is former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. He likes that she was a governor and that she offers diversity to the presidency as a woman and child of immigrants. To a Republican that would protest, he argues he is making their eventual candidate an easier sell in a general election.
“The tent is getting bigger. You have a diversity of opinions. And that is what will make your candidate a better general election candidate," Comellas said. "So if anything, I would think that would be seen as a positive as opposed to just staying in the echo chamber of the party.”
Comellas is aware that the country is hurtling towards a repeat of 2020’s matchup. But he is hoping for a surprise.
“Everybody is expecting that is going to be Trump versus Biden," he said. "But as somebody who has lived for five decades, we know there are surprises.”
One guarantee is that this year Iowa Democrats are taking the reins toward prioritizing its future over the national prospects of a presidential candidate.
